Attorney accused of stealing nearly $30M before his suicide; law firm bankruptcy has recovered $85K

Before he apparently jumped to his death from the roof of his Long Island, N.Y., office in 2010, attorney Jay Korn stole nearly $30 million from clients and other would-be real estate investors in a Ponzi scheme, investigators say.

So far, $85,000 has been collected on their behalf in the involuntary bankruptcy of his law firm, Korn & Spirn, Newsday reports.

That money came from a settlement with a company accused of recruiting investors for Korn. It admitted no wrongdoing but paid $85,000 to settle the case, in which trustee Andrew Thaler said the company had been paid $250,000. He is also seeking $1.25 million from Korn’s widow, Ellen Korn.

Ellen Korn’s lawyer, Michael Cornacchia, declined to comment on the matter when contacted by the newspaper. Cornacchia has previously said his client had no knowledge at the time that Korn was involved in a Ponzi scheme and signed tax returns based on advice from Korn and an accountant.

Thaler says in court filings that the money Korn obtained from selling bogus loan participation notes went to fund law firm operations and a lavish personal lifestyle. When Korn died at age 70, his law firm only had assets about $2,500—most of that in a checking account, an earlier Newsday article reports.

See also:

ABAJournal.com: “Lawyer Who Jumped to His Death Probed in Alleged $11M Ponzi Scheme”

ABAJournal.com: “Investors Allege Lawyer Who Jumped to His Death Defrauded Them of Nearly $28M”